Then There Were Two
by AffyRainbws
Summary: What if Ridos original plan to awaken his ancestor ended differently than the anime, leaving Haruka and Juri with an unexpected extra bundle of joy. How will Yuki's life pan out now with another overprotective family member to deal with?


Then there were two:

Chapter 1

Juri smiled softly rocking back and forth on the old iron rocking chair her mother once rocked her in when she was a baby 3000 years ago. She felt like part of a complete circle now, as she cradled her own child in her arms. Looking at the face of own creation sleeping so peacefully. Juri finally understood her mother's unconditional love for her siblings, even when Rido and Haruka would fight as horribly as they did. They were her children and so could do no harm. Like this small ball of happiness in Juris' arms could do no harm, no matter what this child grew up to be like Juri already knew that she would support him no matter what. And that thought scared her terribly.

Bringing her self out of her thoughts Juri slowly lifted the now sleeping baby to place him in his cot for the coming day.

"You are my precious boy Kaname" she cooed as made her way softly out of the bedroom and retreated to the lounge room to await her husband's return.

…..

Kaname was a family name that was rumoured to be the name of the first Kuran ancestor all those thousands of years ago. It was also a name traditionally given to the eldest son born on a blood moon. And in the days of her families rein over the vampire world the baby boy also had to eat from the heart of the last named Kaname absorbing his life in a "there can only be one" fashion. There were other more brutal rules around the name like having the blood of 100 human virgins pored over the baby and having all the eyes brunt out of any non-pure bloods who looked upon the child till he reached age. But Juri liked to pretend most of that was just a bit of nonsense and despite her baby not fitting any of criteria she named her first born Kaname after her great-grandfather, one of the last great kings, and from what she remembered of him as a child he was a wonderful storyteller.

…...

Rido thought that he should have been named Kaname and resented his parents for it. Rido resented his parents for a lot of things and the birth of his brother more than anything else. But today was not for resentment, today was for revenge. Slipping softly past the few guards and servants on the Kuran manner he made his way into what once, in years long past, was his home. A building that should have been his birthright as the oldest but was left to his spiteful siblings instead.

The sinister old vampire made his way through the house and up to the bedchambers of his sleeping nephew. Entering the room as quietly as the mother had left. Rido lent over the crib and came face to face with the sleeping baby, unmoving beside his soft rhythmic breathing and the gentle rise and fall of his chest. Completely oblivious to the threat that loomed over him. A wicked smile crossed Ridos face.

"Oh, my sweet little nephew how much weight has been put on your shoulder to live up to that big name of yours." Ridos' smiled deepened when the baby took no notice of him. "Dear defenceless Kaname" he cooed with a whisper as he picked up the baby, "today you're going to help your uncle out. How does that sound little one?" Chuckling silently when he got no reply Rido swiftly carried the baby out of his bed chambers and downstairs, deep into the catacombs below the manner.

Rido had spent a lot of time in these catacombs as a child exploring, running and hunting, it was on one of these hunting trips where he let loose a human to run down there that he discovered a long-forgotten secret buried deep in the tunnels.

"You see Kaname" Rido started 'matter of factly' raising his voice to speak normally now there were well out of earshot. "If it wasn't for your ill-fitting name I wouldn't have had this marvellous idea now would I?" He delved into his pocket with his free hand and retrieved a very old key, then using his fingernail, Rido pierced the baby's cheek and smeared the freshly drawn blood across a marked spot on the door. Baby Kaname began to scream and sob, his cries echoing down the hall. Knowing he needed to act quickly now Rido grabbed the baby by the throat to silence him and plunge the key into the blood smeared lock. Impatiently Rido watched as cracks begun to form in what once was a wall at the end of a dead hallway to reveal a delicately decorated cast iron doors with gargoyles and monsters framing the entrance. The artfulness of the door was completely lost on the vampire who barged his way through as soon as he was able.

It wasn't anywhere near as grand as Rido had dreamed but he still slowed his pace as he walked his way in trying to take in every moment and ignore the gurgling cries of the baby in his hand. "The secret Kuran vault" he muttered, saying the phrase aloud filled him with uncontainable joy. Swallowing hard Rido used his free hand to push off the huge lid to the stone coffin, revealing the crumbling skeleton body of what once was the worlds most powerful being, covered in thin decaying robes and 10thousand years worth of dust. Rido felt himself getting all giddy. The man, or what was left of the man, was white as ash; his skin was almost transparent as it stretched itself over his skeleton, he had no eyes and his nose and his ears had broken off over the years. His cheeks looked like they had caved in and he had no fat on his entire body. Rido laughed at the sight of his once mighty ancestor who was now little more than the dust on his coffin. This was to easy!

"Now little one" Rido spoke, his voice booming in the mostly empty room-silencing the hysterical infant in his hand as it watched, wide-eyed in his direction. "I need you to stay _still_ for a moment!" the baby complied (starting to asphyxiate) and simply hung in his uncle's claw-like hand.

Chuckling like a maniac, Rido brought the babies limp body over the ancestor and plunged the fingers of his free hand into the infant's chest causing pure blood to drip down onto the ancestor Kaname evaporating in puffs of steam as it struck the corps. Realising this wouldn't be enough he plunged his whole hand into the child and squeezed tight on the boy's heart causing blood to cascade down.

Losing focuses imagining all the power he would soon have, Rido noticed to late the hand shooting out of the coffin and securely placing itself around his neck.

"Who dares to awaken me from my eternal slumber!?" A deep bellowing voice came from the coffin.

"I, I did" struggling with the hand around his neck Rido wanted to say more, to great his now awakened ancestor properly, to show his own worth but he couldn't get the air to his lungs.

"You!" the voice started again as the man begun to rise. By this time the broken baby had been completely discarded and Rido was now clawing at his ancestor's hand in desperate attempts to get away. But it was no good a millennia of experience was barely a fight against juvenile attempts of power. "How DARE you awaken me! What right do you have!?"

Still struggling for air Rido was able to push out the only word he could think of "P-powerrrrr". It was spoken as more of a request than an answer and that made the ancestor mad.

Kaname chuckled deeply and his barely recognisable face twisted to form a somewhat smirk. "So it's power you want then is it?" Rido nodded in excitement, his mannerisms matching that of a child caught with his hand in the cookie jar. "Then I'll show you power" The ancestor rose further out of the coffin pulling Rido closer bring his hollow skeleton face centimetres from Ridos. The empty caves where eyes should be shone bright like rubies and the disobedient vampire felt a sickening shiver run down his spine like a cold hand of ice.

Kaname grinned flashing his eyes one last time at the vampire in his grasp, before plunging his fangs deep into his throat and in swift practised motions, thrust his spare hand through Ridos chest ripping out his still beating heart. After satisfying himself on the blood of the insolent vampire he let the body collapse and turned his attention to devouring the heart. Revelling in the taste of bold after thousands of years of starvation. Only when he was finished did the mighty being notice the baby who lay discarded on the floor struggling to maintain its grasp on life.

Filled with pity (an emotion the ancestor thought had all but forsaken him) he turned to the babe and crouched down to him, "Hello little one" he said as he picked up the child's broken body and accessed his gaping wounds. They were extensive and children that young would die far more often and far more easily than adults. Concern crossed his face the baby was an innocent in this situation, and Kaname couldn't bring himself to watch the child die...

despite his weakened body Kaname proceeded to silt his own wrist and let his pureblood drip onto the baby's wounds, pouring all the power he had left into healing the infant's wounds and saving his life, but at a cost. A deep dread filled the ancestor as his body begun to burn.

…..

Back upstairs Juri was awoken by the cries of her child and the putrid smell of spilt pureblood. The mother panicked and raced off to her child's room in search of her son. After not finding him in his room and the stench of her eldest brother instead she raced off following her senses down into the catacombs and into the now open vault she was told never to go near as a little girl. The scene in front of her shook her to the bone. Her oldest brother lay crumpled against a wall bleeding out a hole torn through his chest and a skeleton like a figure hunching over her baby boy with blood dripping from his wrist onto her child's chest.

"W-What is going on here" she cried trembling in pain and fear as she rushed over to the coffin where her baby lay, paying her discarded brother no further mind.

Looking over his shoulder to see the panicked woman the ancestor straitened his back slightly and held out the baby to her. "I presume he is yours?" Kaname said as politely as he could manage as his body burnt around him.

Juri desperately took hold of her broken child and clutched him close to her chest locking eyes with the skeleton before her.

Like the crumbling of sand the powerful vampire began to waste away before her, the ghost of his eyes looked grave and frantic. "Can I trust you?" he asked the words no louder than a whisper.

Seeing the frail state of the man the poor mother immediately took pity, she still was unable to process what had happened before she arrived but she knew this weeping pile of bones was no to blame. Still clutching her baby close in her arms she crouched down to the old man to stroke his hollow cheek. "Yes I can be trusted I promise; please how can I help."

The ancient Vampire looked her in the eyes and smiled as best a lipless mouth could, "then I'm sorry" he spoke to a confused Juri as he leant back a bit away from her hand.

Juri opened her mouth to ask what he meant but found herself lost for words as she watched the frail being dissolve into light. Juris first impression was that he died but there was something left over amongst the ashes and tattered robes, something round and pink. With timid hands, she reached for the once noble robes only to expose another baby, roughly the same age as her own Kaname sleeping in the ashes of his former self. Brought to tears Juri gently picked up the new baby with her free hand and held him against her. She looked down at both boys and smiled. She had always wanted twins…

Standing up gently not to stir either child in her arms she turned to face the shocked expression of the beloved older brother. She might have a lot to explain.

* * *

Thank you very much for reading!

please let me know what you think! and if you have any suggestions for baby names for baby Kaname please leave them in the reviews, I was thinking maybe Hitsugi cause that means coffin ( _I_ think) and apparently, the author used to miswrite Kaname for Hitsugi in the original manga (not sure how true that is but I like the sound of the name haha)

ALSO, this is just an edited version of the original chapter I already had up, so sorry if you were already following and were hoping for the next chapter...

anywho, have a good day!


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